Epstein files: Documents barely mention Trump at all. Another president's name is mentioned frequently

The United States Department of Justice on Friday released thousands of heavily redacted documents related to the late financier Jeffrey Epstein, which extensively mention former Democratic President Bill Clinton but make very few references to current President Donald Trump.

Bill Clinton often appears next to Epstein in documents released by the Department of Justice PHOTO: X

Trump's near-total absence from the new documents is notable, given that his name has previously appeared on flight manifests and other Epstein-related material released in past years.

The partial release follows a law passed in November by Congress that compels authorities to release all Epstein files, despite previous attempts by the Trump administration to keep them sealed, the News writes.

The documents include evidence from several investigations into Epstein's activity, as well as photos of Bill Clinton, but very few images or material mentioning Trump, although his relationship with Epstein in the 1990s and early 2000s was heavily publicized. Trump has not been charged with wrongdoing and has said he had no knowledge of Epstein's criminal activities.

The Justice Department acknowledged that many documents are still being analyzed and that hundreds of thousands of additional pages could be made public later. Numerous files are almost entirely censored, some having dozens or even over a hundred pages completely covered.

After publication, Justice Department officials shared images on social media that they claim show Clinton in the company of Epstein and alleged victims. The representatives of the former president reacted by saying that the administration is trying to divert attention from other sensitive aspects of the case.

The law that mandated declassification also requires internal documents, reports and correspondence regarding how authorities handled the Epstein investigation, but these materials do not appear to be included in the set released Friday. Both Democrats and Republicans criticized the extent of the redactions and argued that the publication did not fully respect the spirit of the law.

The Epstein case continues to have a significant political impact in the US, including on the Republican electorate, with some of Trump's supporters accusing the administration of hiding information about Epstein's ties to influential people.

Trump voters, frustrated

Many Donald Trump voters have accused his administration of covering up Jeffrey Epstein's ties to powerful people and hiding details about his death in a Manhattan prison, where he was awaiting trial for human trafficking and child sex abuse.

Only 44 percent of American adults who identify as Republican approve of Trump's handling of the Epstein case, compared with an overall approval rating of 82 percent among the same group, according to a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll. The issue has hurt Trump's political standing ahead of the 2026 legislative elections, when control of Congress will be at stake.

Last month, House Democrats released thousands of emails obtained from Epstein's estate, including one in which Epstein wrote that Trump “knew about the girls,” without clarifying what that meant. Trump reacted by accusing the Democrats of promoting “an Epstein hoax”, to distract.

House Republicans released other emails the same day, including one that said Trump visited Epstein's home many times, but “never got a massage.”

Previous revelations have shown that even after his 2008 conviction, Epstein continued to correspond with high-profile figures including former Trump adviser Steve Bannon, former US Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, PayPal founder Peter Thiel and Britain's former Prince Andrew, formally known as Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, who was stripped of his royal titles because of his ties to Epstein.

Representatives for Bannon, Thiel and Mountbatten-Windsor did not respond to Reuters requests for comment on their interactions with Epstein.

In 2023, JPMorgan paid $290 million to some of Epstein's victims to settle allegations that the bank ignored his sex-trafficking activities. JPMorgan kept Epstein as a client for five years after he was convicted in 2008 of soliciting sexual favors from a minor.